La Villita DAR Chapter will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party with an educational table and “Toss the Tea” on Thursday, December 14, at 6:30 pm, St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Fellowship Hall, 906 George Bush Dr, CS, before their regular meeting at 7:00 pm. As America approaches the 250th birthday of our nation, learning about the December 16, 1773, Boston Tea Party provides insight into the culture and mindset of patriots in many colonies leading up to the American Revolution. “Tossing the Tea” was a protest by the colonists on their major complaint that the British Parliament implemented tax on tea with no representation or right to vote by the colonists.
The United States of America is celebrating our Semiquincentennial - 1773-1783 - a grand anniversary - 250 years. The commemoration period began in 2020, culminates on July 4, 2026, and officially concludes in 2027. The La Villita DAR America 250 Committee promotes DAR’s involvement to maximize visibility with exceptional community involvement, positive public relations and membership growth. Our ancestors were patriots for the birth of the United States, and we will be active in celebrating America's Semiquincentennial. Members honor their Patriots and create interest in who they were and enthusiasm for what they accomplished. Members make a significant impact in the community by installing, re-discovering, restoring, and re-dedicating Revolutionary War-related monuments, plaques, gravesites, and other memorials in our area. We want to honor all Patriots of the American Revolution and recruit DAR members along the way!
La Villita DAR sent loose tea leaves to the Boston Tea Party Museum to join in “Toss the Tea” on December 16 and to honor the sacrifices of our patriot ancestors. America has the liberty to join with others in the ceremonial “Toss the Tea” as a sign of solidarity with those patriot ancestors. "Toss tea" into the "sea" and enjoy a chocolate candy, symbolizing the patriot's replacement of tea with chocolate.
The U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission plans a commemoration of U.S. history driven by local interests. History, like detective work, requires us to evaluate all available perspectives and update our understanding as new evidence comes to light. Americans among the majority that values deep, thoughtful history can voice their desire for a commemoration grounded in that approach.
Interview Options -
- Hayley Ellisor - Regent. The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a volunteer service organization dedicated to promoting patriotism, preserving American history, and securing America’s future through better education for children. Patriot James Templin, Pennsylvania militia referred to as the “Flying Camp”, a strategic and mobile reserve. DAR is reaching out to identify forgotten patriots.
- Margaret Davis - Service Chair. Patriot John McPherson - Midshipman on Frigate Randolph
- Jami Bevans - Historian. Patriot James McAfee, Jr. - helped build and defend McAfee’s Fort, Kentucky, dubbed the Kentucky Pioneer
- Jane Buzzard - Patriot Joseph Jennings - Received Town Bounty, Connecticut
- Kellye Arnold - National Defense Chair and Jane Wert - American Indian Chair. Sarah Bradlee Fulton is considered the Mother of the Boston Tea Party. She helped men dress as Indians to preserve identities. Americans wanted the right to vote. The tea taxation was levied without colonists representation. The colonists voted to refuse to pay the tax on tea.
Location Directions - The St Thomas Episcopal Church Fellowship Hall entry is off Bush - turn South at the light at Bush and Dexter Dr (on the TAMU side it's Coke & Throckmorton). After about a block on Dexter, turn left or East to Aberdeen Place, then via the Northeast corner of the parking lot to Fellowship Hall.
Courtesy of Jane Cohen, La Villita DAR America 250 Committee Chair
